Six months jail for ‘poly-substance user’ who broke into Virgin Media

By Brendan Grehan

A MAN who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia and who broke into a media company and caused €1,000 damage was sentenced to six months jail by Tallaght Court.

Gary Herbert broke into Virgin Media in Broomhill Business Park.

Herbert, aged 35, with an address at Kilcarrig Green, Tallaght, is charged with burglary at Virgin Media, Broomhill Business Park, Tallaght, on November 29, 2015.

Herbert’s solicitor, Michael Hennessy, told Judge Bridget Reilly that his client was pleading guilty.

A garda told Judge Reilly that on November 29 last, Herbert entered Virgin Media through the front door and ransacked the premises. He said nothing was taken during the incident but €1,000 damage was caused.

He said Herbert has 106 previous convictions.

On February 10 last, he had received a six-month suspended sentence for burglary.

At Cloverhill District Court on December 27 last, he had been sentenced to four months for trespass.

Mr Hennessy asked Judge Reilly not to put the case back for a probation report. He asked the judge to deal with the case.

He said Herbert is a paranoid schizophrenic and is also a poly-substance user. He said that sometimes Herbert forgets to take his prescribed medication and added that he hears voices.

Mr Hennessy said his client comes from a very good family.

Judge Reilly said it was a very sad case. She said that she could not see any point in putting the case back for a probation report.

She sentenced Herbert to six months jail.